Utah State Bowl Eligible After Turning Busted Play Into Unlikely Walk-Off Winner

Utah State Aggies football quarterback Levi Williams turned a potential disaster into a riveting highlight.

Utah State entered Friday night’s game at New Mexico needing a win to become bowl eligible, but the Aggies needed two overtimes to take down the Lobos. When Utah State needed a big play, it was quarterback Levi Williams who came to the rescue, although in very unorthodox fashion.

After New Mexico kicked a field goal to take a three-point lead in the second overtime, Utah State had the chance to win the game with a touchdown. Williams, however, initially dropped a second-down snap that could’ve turned into a disaster, but the junior saved the day with an impromptu run, taking the fumbled snap all the way to the end zone for the walk-off win.

As called by @ScottyGZone & heard on the @varsity app: pic.twitter.com/xWHesMWcyh

— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) November 25, 2023

Williams finished the game with 198 passing yards and two touchdown passes, plus 153 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. A transfer from Wyoming, Williams got the start because both quarterbacks ahead of him on the depth chart, Cooper Legas and McCae Hillstead, suffered injuries against Boise State last week.

Utah State’s victory means the Aggies now are eligible to play in a bowl game for the 11th time in the past 13 seasons, including three in a row under coach Blake Anderson. Regardless of whether Williams gets the start in the bowl game, he’s now a legend in Utah State for willing the Aggies into a postseason game.